LEPIDOPTERA

• N Y M P H A L I D A E Swainson, 1827

  • MELITAEA Fabricius, 1807

    
    

    • Melitaea ala Staudinger, 1881

Melitaea ala Staudinger, 1881

• SYNONYM. immodulata Sheljuzhko. 1929.

• TYPE LOCALITY. «Lepsa» [Lepsy Valley, Dzhungarsky Alatau Mts., E. Kazakhstan].

• RANGE. Tian-Shan.

• DISTRIBUTION AND VARIATION. The N. and Inner Tian-Shan are inhabited by the ssp. bicolor Seitz, [1909] (= latemarginata Sheljuzhko, 1929). The nominotypical subspecies is known to occur in the Dzhungarsky Alatau Mts. The S. Altais (Kurchumsky and Ulbinsky mts.) support the ssp. allah Bryk, 1940 (?= zaisana Lukhtanov, 1999; ?= irtyschica Lukhtanov, 1999). From NE. China (E. Tian-Shan), the following taxa have been described: sheljuzhkoi Bryk, 1940, determinata Bryk, 1940, and strandi Bryk, 1940. Unfortunately, the status of all of these forms remains obscure.

• HABITATS AND BIOLOGY. Mountain meadows at about 1,500-3,500 m a.s.l. Flight period: mid-May to the end of July, usually in two generations. Host plant: Ligularia.

• SIMILAR SPECIES. Melitaea didyma: submarginal lunules of UPH well-developed; aedeagus strongly curved. M. ninae: ground colour red. M. kotshubeji: male genitalia different.

Photo and text: Guide to the BUTTERFLIES OF RUSSIA and adjacent territories Volume 2. PENSOFT, Sofia - Moscow. 2000